In February 2008, Rabbi Menachem Froman, chief rabbi of Tekoa in the West Bank, and Khaled Amayreh, a journalist close to Hamas, reached an agreement for an Israeli-Hamas ceasefire in the Gaza Strip that would put an immediate end to all Palestinian attacks against Israeli civilians or soldiers, facilitate the release of abducted Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, and end the Israeli siege of the Gaza Strip. Senior Hamas officials have endorsed the agreement. The Israeli government, however, has not responded to this initiative, effectively rejecting it.
Froman and Amayreh drafted the agreement with after meeting over the course of several months. The agreement was finalized and shown to Hamas leaders in Gaza and Hamas leader-in-exile Khaled Meshal who approved of the agreement. The agreement was also submitted to the Israeli government but according to Froman, the Israeli government never responded to it. The efforts of Froman and Amayreh to meet with Israeli government officials were rebuffed.
The agreement calls for Israel to lift economic sanctions imposed on the Gaza Strip and open all border crossings. The cease-fire agreement includes the release of abducted Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, and a gradual release of Palestinian prisoners. The Israel Defense Forces would end "all hostile activities toward the Gaza Strip, including targeted killings, the setting of ambushes, aerial bombardments and all penetrations into Gazan territory, in addition to ending the arrest, detention and persecution of Palestinians in the Strip."
The Palestinians would be obligated "to take all the necessary steps to completely end the attacks against Israel," including stopping "indefinitely all rocket attacks on Israel," assaults "on Israeli civilians and soldiers" and "to impose a cease-fire on all groups, factions and individuals operating in the Strip."
Froman and Amayreh say that even if the attempt turns out to be merely an academic exercise, its elements could be used by the Jerusalem and Gaza governments. It does not, for example, include the recognition by Hamas of the State of Israel, instead "recognizing that there are Jews living in the Holy Land," according to Froman, thus overcoming an obstacle that has long been a deal-breaker.
Text of the agreement
The text of the agreement is:
In the Name of God, the Gracious, the Merciful
The following is the text of the proposed ceasefire agreement:
Subject: General outlines of a prospective Hudna or Truce between the government of Israel and the Palestinian Authorities in Gaza
Date: January, 2008
Pursuant to this agreement, Israel and the Palestinian authorities in Gaza shall carry out the following obligations:
I. Israeli obligations
II. Palestinian obligations:
III. Verification:
IV. The agreement must be approved by the Palestinian Authority leadership in Ramallah, preferably by Mahmoud Abbas, Abu Mazen.